One of the drafters of the Convention, explained how compliance with advocates’ guarantees will be monitored

The Council of Europe Convention on the Protection of the Professions of Lawyer provides for an independent monitoring mechanism that will assess states’ compliance with the established guarantees. Selected experts will conduct evaluation rounds, respond to critical situations, identify systemic shortcomings, and recommend ways to address them.

Chairman of the Council of Europe’s Committee of Experts on the Protection of Advocates (CJ-AV) and a member of the European Committee on Legal Cooperation (CDCJ) Christoph Henrichs spoke about this during the roundtable discussion titled «The Council of Europe Convention on the Protection of the Professions of Lawyer: a future part of Ukrainian legislation».

It was this Committee that was directly involved in drafting the Convention. Work on the document took place from 2022 to 2024 with the participation of representatives from 15 Council of Europe member states, international bar associations, and practitioners specializing in the protection of advocates’ rights. One of the experts on the CJ-AV was the Vice President of the UNBA, BCU Valentin Gvozdiy, who was delegated by Ukraine and elected Deputy Chair of the Committee.

According to K. Heinrichs, the drafting of the Convention was preceded by Report Doc.14453 on the working conditions of advocates, prepared by the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe in 2017. The report addressed the rise in the number of threats, instances of unlawful pressure, and physical attacks related to professional activities, as well as persecution for representing clients from unpopular or stigmatized groups.

The Convention covers two levels of protection — professional associations and individual advocates. Bar associations must be independent and self-governing, protected from external interference, and able to act on behalf of advocates who are subjected to threats and attacks. Guarantees for advocates include the ability to provide legal assistance and appear in court without hindrance, as well as access to clients who are in custody. The document protects advocates from negative consequences of being identified with a client and from liability for statements made in good faith and in good conscience during procedural actions on behalf of a client.

K. Heinrichs also highlighted the protection of professional secrecy and an advocate’s right to legal assistance during criminal proceedings against them, a search, or a detention. The state must refrain from actions that could undermine the independence of bar associations and consult with advocacy regarding legislative changes that directly affect professional practice. «The Convention establishes clear standards for the protection of rights and freedoms that are important to advocates», - he concluded.

To monitor compliance with the Convention’s provisions, a Group of Experts on the Protection of the Legal Profession is being established. Candidates for membership will be nominated by the States Parties to the Convention and elected by the Committee of the Parties. GRAVO members will work independently and impartially. The group will conduct evaluation rounds and, in critical situations, will be able to apply the urgent procedure provided for in the Convention.

GRAVO will not replace courts or issue binding decisions. «It will be able to identify systemic shortcomings in the judicial system or the executive branch, provide recommendations for addressing these issues, and raise them in the context of political dialogue», - explained C. Heinrichs.

The Convention is also open to states that are not members of the Council of Europe. According to K. Heinrichs, this means that the mechanism for protecting advocates’ rights provided for in the Convention could extend beyond Europe.